Shards of Hope and Despair Arc 1
by dawn214
Summary: Choco, Flora, and Fluffy are three ordinary furry friends living their ordinary lives. But when Choco finds an mysterious omen in a dream, strange things start to happen. A notepad starts talking to him and two psychopaths are after its pages. What will be in store for these three friends? Let's find out...
1. Part 1

Shards of Hope and Despair

Prologue Part 1

"Choco…"

A sweet and soothing voice was calling his name. It sounded familiar. Choco looked around. He was surrounding by nothingness and yet he can feel a presence nearby.

"Hello?" he called out. He knew that a voice so beautiful and innocent would not mean that he was in danger.

"I know you're not gonna hurt me or whatever. Just…show yourself!"

The invisible presence became whimsically tangible as soon as Choco spat out the words. He felt something touch his shoulder, but there was nothing for him to be alarmed of. Choco turned around. He only saw a bunch of pink sparkles. But no one was there.

"I'm afraid I can't show myself to you."

Choco heard the soothing voice again. He started to recognize the voice as he watched the sparkles fade away. It was the voice of a young girl, but it seemed like it was more mature and filled with wise compassion.

"Madoka?"

He knew about the girl who had sacrificed her once casual life in order to bring hope to magical girls; beings who were bound to suffer from an inescapable fate that would continue throughout society. When they are drowned in despair, they lose their humanity and become monstrous witches. Not like Ashley or Ellen, but horrifying monsters that have their own ways in killing people. After observing her friends' heartbreaking experiences, she decided that she couldn't let any more despair spread around the universe. So she wished that all witches from the past, present, and future were all dead and became a god. But her existence has been erased and no one seemed to remember her any more. That is except for few people. Choco was one of them. He had enjoyed watching the series, but he'd never thought he would meet her in person.

"Look," he called to no one in particular, "If there's anything you want to say to me, just say it. I don't know why you would find me, out of all people?"

There was a silence, and then the lovely voice spoke again, "Because I believe that you are worthy enough to save your world. No one else could ever do the same. You see Choco, something terrible is coming. It will do anything to spread chaos around the universe, and it won't stop unless someone puts an end to them. They will try to trample every single sight of hope and replace it with despair so deep and devastating that it breaks my heart to just watch those people suffer."

Choco was confused when she said that. What did she mean he will save his world? And something evil and horrifying is coming? It must mean a new villain, but did she really think that he would stand a chance against this unknown evil force? And if she was so powerful, why couldn't she do anything to stop it?

"But why me? Why not Homura? She's your friend, isn't she? She'd do anything for you!"

"Yes, but she would rather take away someone's life for my sake than spare them. I know that you have a burning compassion that will bring hope when despair invades. "

"But what do you mean?! Are you saying that I'll be the new savior of this world? You want me to stop some bad guy that you can't even face?! And another thing, how am I, quote on quote, "compassionate"? I'm not that nice! Even Flora's parents think I'm a bad influence to Flora! I'm not a kind and caring as you are!"

He knew he shouldn't argue with a sacred goddess like Madoka, but he wanted to express his feelings out. Truthfully, he wouldn't mind if he went on an adventure and go out to fight baddies and save the day. But Madoka made it seem like as if it was a huge responsibility for him. And Choco didn't want to take a huge deal out of this; he just wanted a fun and exhilarating journey and be glorified.

"You won't be the only one Choco. You will have your friends accompany you. And perhaps, maybe even more friends. You will also go through a lot of hardships. But I am confident that you will be able to save all beings in this world, just like I've done it to mine. Don't worry if you think you can't do it, because I know you'll be able to make it through. I have high hopes for you Choco."

Choco wanted to demand for more details and he realized something about Madoka's ominous words, but the whimsical presence was already fading. He knew that calling out for her was useless, but he did it anyway.

"Wait! Madoka! Don't go! You're saying all of this as if I was…"

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

Choco slammed on his alarm clock to shut it off. It was Monday; a great day to start the last week of school. Summer break was coming near and Choco was done with his Finals. He knew he didn't do a great job but he certainly didn't fail. But that wasn't important right now.

"Pfft, perfect timing to start a "glorious adventure…and just when I thought I can take a break….", he mumbled

Choco got off of bed to start his routine. Get up. Walk to the bathroom. Wash face and brush teeth. (He made sure to wash his fangs.) Go back to room. Get dressed. Check if he has everything he needs for school.

"Oh wait...notebook's missing."

He peered to the shelf. He searched at a fast pace to find his notebook. He knew he didn't necessarily need it, but he liked to scribble notes about how school life is rather than taking notes on the actual lesson. When he took it out, a sketchbook fell out with it too. It was a notepad in fact. Choco noticed it as he put the notebook in his book bag.

"Hmph. Odd, I don't remember owning a notepad. Oh well, maybe Flora gave me this on my birthday and I forgot about it. I guess I have a bad memory."

As he checked to see if there was more missing items, Choco thought he saw the notepad's front cover open up by itself. And another thing, it had a face on the first page. He was just about to open his pencil case filled with unsharpened pencils when he saw the face look at him. And on top of that, it spoke to him.

"What's your favorite idea?"

Choco didn't know what to say. Was this really happening? _"Looks like this notepad wasn't a lame birthday gift after all." _Choco thought. _"Or maybe Flora was crazy enough to get a living notepad and she never told me…"_

He looked at the notepad. "You err…talking to me?"

The notepad smiled at him and said with a cheerful yet monotone voice, "Why yes! Mine is being creative!"

Choco did not know what to respond. But he decided he should end it quick so he can deal with it later. "Ok…yeah, mine is to live life and be awesome. Now shut up until I get back."

He flipped the front cover and shunned the notepad's face. Then he rushed downstairs to get breakfast. As usual, his mom and dad was there, ready to cheer him up for "another great day". On his plate was some fluffy looking buttermilk pancakes topped with syrup and butter. Choco wished for some strips of bacon, but he knew that there was no time for that. He wanted to enjoy the softness of the pancakes, but the prophecy dream and the talking notepad couldn't get out of his mind.

His mom must have noticed Choco's shaky behavior. "Choco? Is something the matter? You don't seem like yourself. I know you're sometimes dreary in the morning, but you look like you've just had an electrical shock the moment you woke up."

Choco took half a minute to react. Then he replied, "Oh, umm…I just had a crazy dream last night. Guess I'm still pretty weirded out by it." His response was followed with a few chuckles.

"Really? What was it about?"

There was a small silence. Then he said, "I don't really wanna talk about it…"

His mom gave a tiny laugh. "I see. Guess it must be a teen pup's thing. Now hurry up, you got to get cracking."

After Choco finished breakfast, he said a short goodbye to his parents and went off. He didn't have to rush, but he felt like running anyway. He really needed some energy to lighten him up from the weird things he'd seen this morning. "_It's weird how all these things are coming up out of nowhere."_, he thought. _"I have a feeling something's up, but I hope it won't be too soon." _ Choco was just about to reach the crosswalk when suddenly, something caught his eye. As he stopped, he realized that the weirdness today wasn't over yet. In front of his feet, the notepad was lying down at him, smiling.

TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Part 2

Shards of Hope and Despair Prologue Part 2

Choco looked down at the notepad. It was still smiling as it was the last time he saw it. He shook his head for a couple times and thought,

"_I must be going crazy today_…"

He walked passed it, ignoring its presence. He didn't see it again for a few more blocks. Then, as soon as he was about the stop at a crosswalk on a red light, the notepad appeared again, smiling.

_Ok…maybe I'm not going crazy at all…_

"I'm sorry to stop you like this, but I want to ask a question to you." The notepad said.

Choco knew what it was going to say, but he asked anyway. "What?"

"Do you like getting creative?"

Choco didn't want to answer this question. Being creative wasn't his thing. He was more of the dare-devil type, but he would never spend his time sitting on his desk drawing random stuff that would appeal to others. That was mainly Flora's thing. But he knew the darn thing was itching to know. So he ended up grumbling,

"No."

The notepad gave a small frown. "Shame, I like it."

"Well, good for you."

"Why, thank you!"

_It clearly doesn't know what sarcasm is…_Choco thought.

Choco looked at his phone to check the time. It was 7:54. School starts at 8:00 and he was just 4 blocks away.

"OH SH*T. Sh*t, Sh*t, Sh*t. I'm gonna be late again. UGH! Why does this keep happening to me!"

Suddenly the notepad jumped on to him. Choco was caught off guard, but he didn't drop it. The notepad had shocked him more than him being late. It wasn't everyday you have a talking notepad showing out of nowhere. Now the thing was getting on his nerves. He angrily screeched,

"God! What do you want now?!"

"I want to see how you get your creativity. Maybe you don't think you have it, but I do."

Choco groaned. But it looked like he didn't have a choice. If he just left it there, it will still find a way to stalk him again. It would never end…

"Alright, FINE. But you have to stay in the bag for the entire day. Got that? And don't go on a talking spree while you're at it."

The notepad smiled and nodded. Choco wasn't sure if he should trust the thing, but he had no choice. He need to hurry as soon as possible. Even if it was nearly the end of school, he certainly can't miss anymore days.

_Great. First Godoka invades my dreams and now a talking notepad is clinging on to me as if I'm its biggest fan. What else can happen? _

"Do you think it can be here?"

"I believe so. I sense its presence. Can you feel yours too?"

"Yes. I can feel it. Don't think I'm dumb enough to not know that he's here too. Wherever that scoundrel goes, he'll follow."

Two figures stand in the shady alleys. No one dared to go through such a dangerous place. Perhaps Luna would be the only person to dwell in such places, but she wasn't the only one. The two lovers have seen many horrifying places and it was wonderful. They wouldn't mind to hide in such places like the alley.

"Tony…those two…they're aware…"

"About us?"

"Well, technically yes, but…it's more than that."

"It's not just jealousy isn't it?"

"They don't want us to be alive."

There was a pause. But the pause didn't silence their conversation. The sound of a pocket watch kept ticking while ink drops kept dripping. Tick, tock, tick, tock. Drip, drop, drip, drop.

"Don't fret my dear Paige. They'll be gone, just like our little friends."

"You mean…our little victims?"

Tony gave a soft laugh. "Why yes. But not just them. There will be others and we'll give them a little surprise too."

Choco was looking over his finals grades on English 9. 74 wasn't too bad of a score. As long as his grade was over 70, everything was fine with him. Tangerine, who was sitting next to him, tried to peek through his papers.

"Ah, ah, ah, Tangerine! You know what said: No peeking at other people's scores"

"Yeah, but who cares? It's not like I'm gonna spread the news world wide and totally ruin your entire reputation and make everyone stare at you for the rest of your miserable life. Tee hee!"

"If that's meant to be a joke, it's not funny."

Choco wished that Flora and Fluffy was here, but he was at a lower class than they were; both have taken the Honors class while he is stuck in CP. Instead, he was stuck with a bunch of other low animals, like Tangerine and Orey. Those two will not stop to give him a break.

"What's the matter Fudge? Cat gotchya tongue? Hah! If it did, GENIUS CATS STRIKE AGAIN! YEE DOGS ARE INFERIOR!"

"Shut up Tan. It's none of your business. Just had a rough morning, that's all."

"No seriously, I know that face. Everyone has seen it before. It's everyone on tv shows and stuff. Main chara has weird things going on and crazy sh*t happens. Am'a right?"

Choco slightly winced when he heard her say that. Of course that happens in cartoons and anime, but surely it wouldn't happen to him right? I mean, he knew it was coming. It's something he would expect to happen. He just didn't know what to react to it when it comes.

"Look, if you think I'm gonna be some superhero in a cheesy anime, you got the wrong guy."

Tangerine gave an unamused face. "Whateves. You're no fun at all." Then she looked at Choco's book bag. She opened it at took out the notepad.

Choco turned around and snatched it out of her paws.

"HEY! What do you think you're doing?"

Tangerine looked as if she was Sherlock and that she solved a case.

"Checkin if you have anything special to hide. You know that when you have that face, you know that thing is special. HAH! Case closed my dear Watson~"

"Your Mr. Watson is out of service and I don't think he'll be coming back anytime sooner."

Choco worried that in any second, the notepad would come alive and talk in front of the whole class. He'd be busted. Done. Finished. Off with the hill. Curiously enough, it didn't. But he was unaware of his teacher calling on him and Tangerine.  
"Choco, Tangerine. This may be a time to check your grades, but it is not the time to talk.",

"Yes ."

Choco glared at Tangerine, indicating that if she touched his stuff again, she'd die. Tangerine gazed at him, indicating that he wasn't himself today, and he wasn't.

It was only a half day, but it seem so long to Choco. He was weirded out from this morning and he hoped that nothing can go worse. Thankfully, he spent the next few classes with his buddies Flora and Fluffy. It was good to have them around. Well, sometimes…they can be annoying to him at times, but they were alright.

Flora was the only girl, and most possibly, the most mature from the trio. Choco met her first when his family moved into a new town. To Choco, she was like a bro in a girl's body. She wasn't a tomboy, but she liked hanging out with boys. Not because she was "in love" with them; she thought they were more awesome to hang out with. She may have different interests than him, but she knew what Choco liked or hated. She understands him, but she can get ticked off by him once in a while. She has a small temper, but that didn't stop her from being polite to others. Choco was normally annoyed by polite people because they were boring. But Flora was an exception. He was glad that a girl like her would accept a rowdy yorkie like him.

Fluffy was Choco's bro, even though he wasn't bro material. When Choco and Flora first met him, he was a shy little bunny who wanted to be friends with them. He was still a shy underdog today, but he was tolerable to Choco. In fact, he was a complete opposite version of him. Choco was courageous. Fluffy was diffident. Choco loved taking risks. Fluffy was afraid of them. But for some reason, Choco liked having Fluffy around with him because he knew Fluffy would be defenseless without him. He didn't like seeing Fluffy getting attacked by mean people like Candy or Luna, so he thought he was going his buddy a favor. And another thing, Fluffy would always owe him one. But he sometimes wished that Fluffy would do something on his own for once.

"So guys!" Choco started, "Since school's almost over, what do ya say we have some good old fashioned sleepovers? Y'know, like we used to when we were kids?"

"I guess." Flora said, "As long as we don't have anything busy to do. You know us middle schoolers. We get piled up with school work. It's a never ending cycle…"

Fluffy tried to add himself into the conversation. "At least we still get to see each other during break…it's not like we're never gonna see each other ever again."

"True that!", Flora replied. "And even if we would, we would still try to get in contact."

"Flora, don't pretend that we're stupid enough to not have each others' phone numbers." Choco retorted.

"Yeah…says the wannabe hero who just got in trouble with the "villainous" Tangerine Zetz."

Flora didn't forget to use the "quote on quote" gestrure.

"You heard, huh? Well, it's nothing. I just had a rough morning. That's all. I'm not crazy, I swear!"

"You're always crazy Choco. Everyone knows that."

"Yes Fluffy. But today's different. There's a lot of craziness in this world, and this one is different from my usual."

"Oh really? Then what was it?"

"I told you Flora. It's none of your guys' business. Oh wait, I wanna see if I have everything. Give me a second."

That was the only excuse Choco could make to check if the notepad was there. He went to a nearby bench and put his book bag on it. He looked inside. It wasn't there. Choco felt like his heart dropped hard. Normally, if he left something behind, he would shrug it off later, but this thing was alive. It could be anywhere. He need to find it so it wouldn't get into trouble.

"Oh sh*t. I think I left something. I'll be right back!"

Flora gave a confused look. "But Choco. You'd just wait until tomorrow to get it, right? That's what you usually do…"

"Yeah, but today's different!"

"But the last day of school is tomorrow. There's no need to…"

"Whatever! See ya guys later! I'll talk with you guys later on phone!"

Choco rushed to his English class. He remembered the last time he saw the notepad, it was there. He swore he put it back into his book bag. Was it open back then? Did the notepad suddenly escape while he wasn't looking? So much unnecessary worries filled his head. He just hoped it was there.

When he reached the classroom, he rushed to his desk. He was relieved to find out that the door was unlocked. But when he looked all over the room, he found out that it was no where in sight.

"Oh god…why…"

It must have scampered off. The question is: where? Some hero Choco would turn out to be. He sighed and decided that it wasn't his business anyway. Maybe the notepad had gone off to tease someone else. If that was the case, then he truly was going crazy.

"Ugh! I give up. I can't believe I wasted my precious time on that stupid talking notepad…"

"Don't be stupid friend! Time can't be wasted. You didn't waste any at all!"

Choco winced when he heard a random voice. It was the suave and smooth voice of a British gentleman. He looked around to see if anyone was there. As expected, there was no one. Of course…

"And besides, that notepad you speak of is actually a sketchbook!"

Choco doublechecked the room. Something caught his eye. A blue clock with four yellow stripes and red hands was hanging on the wall above the chalkboard. It had eyeballs and a mouth. And it was staring right at him.

Now Choco was sure he wasn't going crazy. He wanted to scream, but he was so shocked that he couldn't do anything. All he could do was to point at the clock and gap at him. It made him look like an idiot, but how else would he react?

"You just talked right? I'm not dreaming right? I swear! I know for sure! You just talked! And you're lookin at me too! AUGH! This day just can't get any worse, can it?!"

"Calm down friend. It's not the end of time."

Suddenly, the clock fell down from wall and arms and legs popped out of it as it dropped. When he landed, he was holding a yellow bow with red stripes and put it on its face. Choco didn't know what to say. He had seen a stalking teleporting notepad talk to him. Now it's a magical talking clock…

_Things are starting to get weirder and weirder aren't they…_Choco thought

"Greetings dear friend. I am Tony. Tony the talking clock.", the clock said flamboyantly.

Choco reached out his hand for a handshake. The clock, Tony, reached out his and they both shook.

"Choco Fudgemallow…", he replied meekly.

"Nice to meet you Choco. My, that is a creative name, isn't it? I bet little sketchbook would love that."

"Wait, you mean the notepad?" Choco could tell that Tony might know who the notepad was. They must have come from the same universe, seeing how similar their faces looked.

"SKETCHBOOK, excuse you." Tony said in a passive aggressive voice. "I know it may look like a notepad, but it's actually sketchbook. It hates it when everyone gets its name wrong. I wonder if that physco barbie doll has told you that."

"What? It's a notepad…I mean, I get that it's a sketchbook, but…still…looks like one. Sketchbooks have that spiral thingy, don't they?"

"Well yes, but…" Tony had a pause, then he gasped, looking alarmed. "Why, this isn't the time to sit around and talk! We must find it!"

"Find it. But it can be anywhere! How do we know where it is?"

"Don't worry friend. I can feel its presense and I know it's here around somewhere. And you're coming with me!"

Tony grabbed Choco paw and raced out of the room. Choco didn't realize how fast he was going.

"C'mon, it's TIME to go!"

"Uh huh, yeah, can you stop with the time puns already? I get that you're a clock, but it's getting old." Choco screeched.

"Time is important and I am a clock! Now hurry! We have to get there before they do!"

"Before who?"

"Those two excuses of human beings who pretend they are us when they aren't. Quickly! We don't have much time!"

Choco had no idea what Tony was talking about. Whatever it was, it seemed really urgent. Is this what was coming to him? How will he handle it? Will he face new enemies? What will they be like? So many questions spammed his brain, but he just hoped it will turn out alright in the end.


	3. Part 3

Shards of Hope and Despair

Arc 1 Part 3

"What do you think Choco lost this time?", Fluffy asked to his feline friend.

"I dunno. Whatever it is, it must have been really important." Flora replied, "I mean, did you see the way he ran after telling us? Looked like he was in a hurry. That's not something you'd expect from him, wouldn't you?"

"No…I guess…"

Flora and Fluffy walked through the sidewalk heading to Carl's Munchies, where the trio would usually hang out after school for a snack. To disrupt the silent awkwardness, Fluffy asked,

"Does Choco know we're going here?"

"I bet he will." Flora said without even looking at him. "I sent him a text message to come here. He'll find us soon."

They were a few blocks away from the snack shop until Fluffy stuttered, "Hey Flora. I was thinking…can we not go to Carl's Munchies for today? And ummm…maybe go to Le Pâtissier de Rêve for once?"

"Hm? I don't see why not. I'll text Choco if it's ok with him."

"Um, you know what? Maybe we'll go on another day." Fluffy said, quickly changing his mind. "I don't think Choco would like that. Let's just go to Carl's Munchies."

Flora looked up from her phone and said, "Oh c'mon Fluffy. You don't have to be afraid to say what you want."

"But it's true! You know Choco doesn't like going to cafes like those. He thinks their kinda boring. I don't think he knows that I like them."

Flora was silent for a moment. She was the one who met Choco first, so she'd know more about him. She was surprised that Fluffy felt somewhat distant after so many years of their friendship. Believing it was not true, she continued, "Of course he does. He'd go if you wanted him to."

"But Flora, you know I'm not like that…" Fluffy looked as if he was scolded for doing something wrong. "I can't force him to do stuff…"

"I'm not saying you should be forceful. If you want to go, then we'll go. If Choco doesn't like it, we'll just say it's only for this once. I mean it's not like he's gonna stop being your friend if we do."

"I know that…"Fluffy added quietly enough so Flora couldn't heard, "I'm just afraid it will happen."

To lighten Fluffy up, Flora grabbed his hand and said cheerfully, "C'mon! Let's get going! I bet they'll have chocolate! Choco loves those!"

"Yes! Chocolates are definitely creative treats for a creative dog like him!"

Flora and Fluffy stopped. They knew that the other wasn't talking and someone else was. But who could it be? They looked around to find out who it is. No one was around.

"Over here! To your right!"

Flora and Fluffy looked at their right. They saw a notepad with a smiling face sitting on a nearby bench. Was that thing that was talking to them? It seemed unbelievable but not impossible. Flora was the first to speak. "Are you talking to us?"

"Yes!" the notepad exclaimed.

There was a small pause. Fluffy looked freaked out but Flora looked still, as if she was trying to not make sudden movements. The notepad looked at them cheerfully, and finally said,

"What's your favorite idea? Mine is getting creative!"

Flora was about to speak, and then Fluffy asked timidly, "How do you get that kind of idea? Do you-"

"I just try to think creatively!" Fluffy got cut off.

Then the notepad looked at Flora and pointed at her flower, which was an ordinary daisy. It obviously wasn't real, but Flora liked to wear those kinds of flowers.

"Now look at that pretty daisy!"

It turned to the two pets and said, "Tell me please. What do you see?"

Flora said, "It's just a flower. It's not real by the way though."

"Maybe to you. But not to me!"

The notepad probably didn't care if it was fake or not. Fluffy suddenly got what this notepad was aiming for.

"Oh, so are you-"

"I see a funny face!"

He got cut off once again.

"Walking around and smiling at me!"

Fluffy hoped that the notepad will listen to him for once, "Is that how you think creatively?"

The notepad looked at him and gave a bright smile.

"Yes! You look like you're ready to be creative, just like that dog!"

Fluffy felt proud by that compliment. He wasn't sure if the notepad meant it or not, but he liked it. But his happiness got cut off again when Flora asked, "Wait, you know Choco?"

"Is that his name? It's creative!"

"Yeah…creative sure is your favorite word, isn't it?"

"Yes it is! Do you like getting creative?"

Flora started to beam when she heard this. "Well, I like drawing sketches of flowers and stuff! It's one of my favorite hobbies. I think that counts as creative? I bet you'd love to see some of my artwork. Not that I'm a show off or anything."

"That's great! Looks like I've met a lot of creative people today!" The notepad started beaming as well. Flora and Fluffy felt as if they were having a good time with their new friend. But suddenly, the notepad had an alarmed look, as if some predator was approaching and it was the prey. It jumped onto Flora, who caught her in perfect timing. It looked at the two and said with a frightened voice,

"Oh dear! She's coming. We got to run!"

Flora and Fluffy had no idea what was going on. Before they could ask what scared the little notepad, it repeated, "We got to run!"

No questions asked, Flora and Fluffy headed to Carl's Munchies. But the notepad frantically said, "No, no NO! Not that way! We got to run!"

"But why?" asked Fluffy. "Is someone after us?"

"No time! She's after me! She ruins my day and everyone else's!"

"But who is she?"

The notepad didn't reply. They ran as fast as they could, passing by other people who watched in confusion. They reached the neighborhood and stopped by at a small grass field. It was a quick run, but the two were unexpecting this so they felt tired at the moment. Flora put the notepad on the ground to feel less exhausted.

"I think that's it…I don't think I can run anymore…Did we lose that thing or whatever it is?"

The notepad stayed steady for a moment. "I think so…"

Fluffy looked up from panting. "But who is she anyway? I wanna know."

"Would you like to find out?"

The three winced as they heard a high pitched feminine voice speak out the words. Something about that voice seemed rather calm, yet somewhat dangerous. They all turned around and saw face to face with a strange looking woman. The woman had long and beautiful multicolored curly hair with various colors of red, yellow, green, blue, purple, and pink. Her face was the only feature that was purely white. Not pale peach; just pure white. The rest of her body was entirely black; her neck, her arms and legs, were all black. She was also wearing a childish yet beautiful dress. It was white with a red splattered neckline and puffy shoulders studded with ruffles. The skirt was decorate with a variety of illustrations; a raincloud, an orange followed with branches and leaves, a small clock and an x. A smile curved on her black painted lips as she looked at the three, but it did not look like she was genuinely happy to see them.

"Why hello there my dear friends." She said politely. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Flora and Fluffy didn't know how to respond. The notepad, who had jumped into Flora's arms, looked absolutely petrified, as if it had forgotten everything that has happened in the last few minutes. They knew something was up, but they just didn't know what to do. Flora was the first to reply.

"Um, who are you?"

The woman giggled. "My my, we're off at a good start, aren't we?" She slowly walked towards the three as she spoke.

"My name is Paige. I see you've met darling little notepad over there, haven't you?"

"It's Sketchbook!" squealed the notepad.

"Poor little thing. She doesn't know what she is…" the woman added with a tone of mocking sympathy.

Fluffy stuttered timidly, "I….Is it…..your's?"

Paige gave a delighted look and said, "Why yes! I've been looking for her everywhere. She's such a naughty little thing, trying to run away from me all the time!"

"I'm not a girl!" the sketchbook screamed angrily, "I'm just paper!"

"Oh stop it you." Paige laughed. Then she turned to Flora. "Now would you be a kind dear and give me that notepad? Please?"

Flora looked apprehensive, but she wasn't afraid to resist. "I don't know. This thing told us to run away…from you."

Paige laughed again and said, "Don't believe everything she says. She's just saying that to trick you."  
"Why would I trick you? I just wanted to get creative!" the sketchbook said, looking at Flora. She looked at its bland looking expression, but she could tell there was panic written all over its face. She looked at the strange looking woman again. She was smiling as if she was ready to kill her. By observing their faces, Flora knew who was more trustworthy. She backed away and said,

"No. I'm sorry, but I don't think this thing wants to be with you."

Fluffy and the sketchbook looked relieved for a brief moment. But it was soon diminished as the sky started to grow darker, as if it was starting to become night already. But there was something else: On the cinderblock walls, black stains were dripping all over. It looked as if it was made from ink. Paige looked at them, still smiling. But when she spoke, there was no delightful glee in her voice.

"Fine then. Let's get creative then…NAUGHTY LITTLE VICTIMS!"

She grabbed out a pencil with, much to Flora and Fluffy's shock, blood stains on its writing rear. The grass and trees around them started to wither and the walls were absolutely covered with black inked stains. The sky had completely darkened to a shade of dark purple. While the two were trying to absorb the scene, Paige suddenly lunged toward them, striking her sharpened pencil towards them. Fluffy and the notepad shrieked as the two tried to avoid the attack. Flora got a little scratch on her arm; it hurt, but not a lot.

"What are you crazy?!" Flora screamed in shock and disbelief.

Paige giggled again and added serenely, "Not as crazy as you think. I hardly doubt you have a creative mind like mine!"

Hearing the word, "creative", Flora looked at the sketchbook, whom she was still holding, "Are you related to this bitch?"

The sketchbook didn't reply but its eyes said everything. There was a connection between these two, but Flora couldn't figure it out. She looked at Fluffy, who seemed to be thinking the same thing as Flora was. One thing for sure, Paige and the Sketchbook are not the same person.

Choco didn't want to ask how Tony knew where the Sketchbook was, so he remained silent during the entire run.

"This way friend! I know it's there!" Tony exclaimed.

"Do you even know if it's even there?"

"Yes! I can feel it. OH!" Tony stopped with a shout, "They're here too!"

"Who is? Those two wannabes you were talkin about?"

"Yes! Oh goodness me, look at the time! We must hurry!"

Tony and Choco ran even faster, as they walked towards the grassy field near the neighborhood. Just as soon as they reached it, Choco found a horrifying surprise. There was a creepy looking woman surrounded by a dark withering atmosphere. He wasn't even going to question how she did it, but she did it somehow. He did notice its uncanny resemblance to the Sketchbook he had saw earlier; its features of white and black made it obvious.

_So this must be the wannabe Tony was talking about…_Choco thought to himself. He could handle talking inanimate objects, but he wouldn't handle something like this.

But what shocked him even more was that Flora and Fluffy was there. His friends! His two friends he'd cared about in the whole entire world! They were trapped between huge twisted looking branches with withering leaves around it. The branches looked thick and were covered in spikes, so there was no way Choco could pry them out. Besides, he didn't have the strength to do so. He also noticed the Sketchbook was trapped between the branches too, adding itself as the victim. Choco wasn't going to watch and do nothing.

"Hey you!" he yelled so he can get the woman's attention. Sure enough, it worked as the woman and his friends turned at him.

"Leave my friends alone you psyco barbie doll!"

Tony seemed to chuckle by the nickname. He didn't seem to mind that Choco was stealing his idea. The woman on the other hand didn't seem to like it.

"Well, looks like we have more friends to play with."

Choco could tell that he hated her even more because of her obnoxiously high pitched voice.

"I suppose we'll have more creative fun." Then she looked up, "Don't you agree dear Tony?"

"Certainly Paige. This will be more fun than anything!"

Tony flinched nervously and whispered, "No…it can't be."

"What?" Choco asked after noticing.

"We ran out of time. They're both here!"

Choco turned around and saw a man standing right behind him. The man was strangely handsome, but Choco knew that good lucks won't make a better person. The man had blue skin, which seemed unnatural unless you were a smurf. He had shiny and neat black hair with yellow highlights and a small yellow beard studded on his chin. He had red marks on the tip of his nose; the marks looked like clock hands. He was wearing dapper clothes, which could explain why he looked so handsome. It was a black suit with a small pocket watch and a yellow bowtie with red stripes. Choco figured that this man was the wannabe trying to be Tony the clock.

"What shall we do with them Tony?" asked Paige, beaming with psychotic delight.

"Hmmm…how about we try to teach them the lesson of life and death?" the human version of Tony said calmly. "I wonder how long it would take for their brains to…ah, let's see…. Function after we decapitate their heads?"

Fluffy gave an alarming shriek as they continued to talk.  
"I always wanted to see how beautiful the color of their blood is, but whatever works for you dear!" Paige said as she laughed with Tony.

Choco felt like enough was enough. He needed to stop these two psychopaths before anything else happens.

"Alright you psychos! I'm not gonna stare and watch you kill me or my friends! You're going down!"

Tony and the Sketchbook gasped.

"No Choco!" He heard Flora and Fluffy scream.

Tony the human looked at Choco and said, "Alright then little doggy. Let's have a small match then. I believe this will be a waste of your time."

Choco winced as he noticed the dapper pulled out a strange looking sword. At least it looked like a sword, but it was twisted with black clock hands that seemed to sparkle. Choco put his bag down ready to fight. He knew this was not going to end well, but it'll be worth it.


End file.
